Some get it, some don't get it.

Something I read over the weekend about the recent JetBlue meltdown, and CEO David Neeleman's crisis management of it, reminds me that some execs "get" marketing. And others do not. Make no mistake, what JetBlue faced after the inexcusable, inexplicable way it treated passengers during this month's blizzard, may have been labeled a "PR" problem but its implications seep far into the airline's marketing and, ultimately, its operations function, as well. To Neeleman's credit, he let his instincts -- rather than his lawyers -- tell him what to do. The result was that the court of public opinion apparently cut him some slack. Crisis managers give Neeleman strong marks for putting JetBlue's brand ahead any of financial liability that may ensue. What's great about Neeleman's very public penitence, from the full page "We're sorry" ads in national media, to his appearance on the Letterman Show, to a video on You Tube was that it didn't require the advice of a crisis consultant. Why? Because Neeleman has the Marketing Gene. He sees the world through the eyes of his passengers, and not the lens of his company. The picture he saw screamed for him to make public acknowledgement that some horrendous wrongs had been done and that the buck stopped at his office. And just as some executives have an intuitive feel for what to do and how to do it, others see no recourse but circling the wagons and hunkering down with their attorneys. Those are generally the same tone-deaf bozos who, in the face of sluggish sales, will want to hack and hew at all expenditures intended to give people reasons to go out and buy their company's wares. The executives who "get" crisis management are, by and large, the same ones who get it when it comes to the broader marketing function as well. They know what it takes to give people reasons to buy because they share the same point of view. They see their own product through the eyes of their customers. You don't learn to do that, at least not in my experience working with senior managers. You either can or you can't. You get it, or you don't.

Wanna buy a quantum computer?

Apparently there's some interest. How much? As of today, our launch of D-Wave Systems last week, at the Computer History Museum in Silicon Valley, followed a couple of days later at the Telus Science Center in Vancouver, B.C., generated about 300 media stories. Sure, this includes A.P. wire stuff in places like Soda Pop Valley, PA. But, still. This is a scalding-hot product concept in an equally hot category embraced by people who generate the heat of agitated molecules. What's the big deal with quantum computers, you ask? Good question. It boils down to making computing faster. By quantum leaps. What this will do for drug discovery, for example, boggles the imagination. Cancer vaccines? Cure for Alzheimer's? Maybe not as far off as people thought before last week. Anyway, it made me proud to be part of this process -- something I'd not experienced in many years. Great clients make great agencies. This was really cool. Stay tuned to D-Wave.

SuperBowl spots: exercises in theatrics, not marketing

If marketing is what you do give people reasons to buy your beer/car/insurance/cola/etc., what we see during timeouts on Super Sunday is not marketing. Theater, standup, skits, self-indulgence and attempts at eye candy, but marketing? No way, no how. Consider the latest line-up of lames aired yesterday. Did the "slapfest" do it for you? Do you really want to go out now and by a Chevy? Do you really think Budweiser and Coors taste any better now than the swill they brewed before? There are more compelling, more entertaining, more interesting skits on Mad TV and SNL, every week, for way less money, than the dreck shoveled at us on Feb. 4.

Whose side on YOU on?

I may not have gone to Davos this year, but I re-read a great little how-to book published in 2002, Net Words, by Nick Usborne, about online copywriting. (I saved a ton of money avoiding Switzerland.) Couple of things I got from the book I'll share with you now. Thing One: When you set about to write something aimed at a prospective customer, are you on your company's side, chasing a sale? Or do you instinctively identify with the prospect -- the person you're talking to? To write copy that sells, with apologies to Vince Lombardi, identifying with the customer isn't the most important thing. It's the only thing. For years, we've been pounding on the concept that outside-in marketing , what we call customer advocacy, is really about seeing the world through your customers' eyes. To write great copy, says Usborne, "...you need to have a place inside their heads and get a genuine feel for how they react to your site, how they feel about what you are offering--and what it would take to make them feel more comfortable about making a purchase." Amen. Here's Thing Two: Test, test and test again. "The Web is a tester's dream come true," Usborne writes. "While testing...in a direct mail piece involves a time line of months, those same kinds of tests can be executed and analyzed online in a matter of hours. You can test the words themselves, and you can test the various offers they describe." The customer side is the winning side. Be sure you stay on it.

How low can your logo go?

Too many otherwise bright people in and around marketing believe in the inherent paranormal powers of the logo. So what is a logo, anyway? In fact, it's the graphic reminder of the "promise" your product (read: YOUR COMPANY) makes to a prospective buyer. It's a promise about the kind of experience the buyer can expect. Think of a logo. Cars: what does the VW logo promise? Or the Lexus logo? The Prius logo? Think of sporting goods. What can you expect about the product it adorns when you see the Nike swoosh? There are a couple of points here. First, an early-stage company isn't going to create an instant promise no matter how hip and cool and "authentic" its graphics might be. It takes time and promotional dollars to associate a logo with an experience. The second point is that it's not the logo per se that drives a reputation because the promise doesn't start there. With a new company (product) the promise made by the brand gives birth to the look of the logo. You've got to establish the promise first. The logo is merely the reminder of the experience you should expect.

Top ten reasons why some entrepreneurs are their own worst enemy

When entrepreneurs go bad (jeeze, I'm starting to sound like a venture capitalist): 1. They want marketing to deliver eye candy early and often. 2. They believe their product is so cool and kick-ass, market research is a superfluous luxury. 3. They think marketing is what you do to compensate for a lack of cool, kick-ass product. 4. While denying it, they proceed as if delivery of the product is the objective -- rather than delivery of a successful product. 5. They think "A/B testing" has something to do with grade-point-average. 6. They know good eye candy when they see it. 7. They can't describe what their product does, but believe customers will know it when they see it. 8. "Market testing? User feedback? No time, man, schedule's too tight already." 9. When the product underwhelms the marketplace, they'll blame marketing for stale eye candy. 10. Out of funds, they'll seek jobs in marketing.

Before you hit "send", hit THINK.

There should be an email button, right next to "send", labeled "think." A window would appear saying something like, "Sure you want to send this? Or should this information be communicated another way, say, in a phone call or a face-to-face meeting with the door shut?" Or, "are you sure the person who reads this will fully understand what you're saying or what you want accomplished?" Which brings me to this: how do you know, really know, when to send an email, or an instant message, make a phone call, leave (or not leave) voicemail, or just wait to communicate face to face? I know, it depends. But it also says something about the connections and similarities between a) communicating, b) marketing, and c) plain-old common sense. Here's what I mean: "Marketing" is what you do to give people reasons to buy. This means you have to know more than a little about the "people" to whom you're selling as well as the the stuff you want them to purchase. If you draw the analogy to email, voicemail, phone conversations, instant messages, and face to face meetings -- all of the above can be thought of as either "media" or "distribution". The content of your message is the product. First, let's get the no-brainers out of the way: It's not cool or productive to wait for a face to face meeting to alert somebody to a short-fuse deadline or share a "FYI" about a non-critical matter. And unless you're a total jerk, you don't demote or fire somebody via instant message. But most situations fall into the vast middle and require some thinking. If it's a one-to-one communication and a complex topic, opt for a phone call at least. Make it personal. If it's really complex, there is still no substitute for face-to-face. If a gaggle of people need copying, or blind-copying (which will always carry the stigma of sneakiness) email's probably still the way to go. A quick conversation on the fly is ready-made for instant messages. Still, working the phones and voicemail -- but ONLY for brief and succinct messages -- is preferential to most emails. Yes, it can be time-consuming and tedious to play phone-tag, but sometimes there's nothing more effective than the old "call". A phone call followed by a confirmational email leaves little room for misunderstanding. It's good communication and good marketing. Know your product AND your customer.